Pastoral Relationship with People with Intellectual ... - Theses

101services to people with a range of disability needs across the state ranging frominstitutional accommodation, community-based accommodation and respiteservices to home care.Today the Highgate building is the only remaining accommodation blockat the Fullarton campus. With the configuration of two wards on each of the threeremaining accommodation floors each ward is designed to resemble a hospitalward. Two aisles are joined at one end by a central nurses’ station with anadjacent room for medical consultation. These two rooms define the centralmedicalised priority of this living and working space. Down the outer side ofeach aisle is a mixture of accommodation rooms, various single rooms, eachapproximately five metres by three metres, a few two-person rooms, and onefour-person room. A shared dining and living area is adjacent to the nurses’station. A smaller shared living area is adjacent to the medical consultation room.Shared toilet and bathing facilities occupy the central area. A covered balconyencompasses the perimeter of the accommodation rooms. Whereas in the late1970s people with disabilities used to occupy seven floors of the Highgatebuilding, they are now accommodated on three floors.3.1.7 Minda HomeMinda became established through the unlikely alliance of two Adelaidepoliticians, namely Charles Kingston and Josiah Symon, the former being of areforming liberal political persuasion and the latter being an independentconservative. Their shared charitable desire developed from Kingston’s childlessmarriage, and for Symon a marriage that produced two children with intellectualimpairment. 266Following an approach to the government’s Chief Secretary by Kingston,Symon and many concerned citizens, the government promised a sum of £500contingent upon a comparable amount being donated from public sources.Following the procurement of this funding a home was bought in 1897 atFullarton catering for what were referred to as ‘feeble-minded children.’ In May1898, 10 children, so defined, moved into this facility. The home, called Minda,266 Dickey, Rations, Residence, Resources, 116.